Gov. Jerry Brown has named a psychologist who ran Pennsylvania's prisons as the new director of California's prisons.

Jeffrey Beard ran Pennsylvania's prisons from 2001 to 2010 and will take one of the most challenging positions in state government as secretary of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The position requires confirmation by the state Senate.

"The new secretary has just the experience California needs. He's been a prison warden, led the correctional system in Pennsylvania, and more recently participated in the federal oversight of California's prisons, visiting the majority of our institutions," Brown said in a statement. He went on to say that Beard has arrived at the right time to help return the state's prisons "to their former luster."

Since his retirement from Pennsylvania prisons in 2010, Beard has been a consultant to correctional institutions, including those in California. If confirmed by the Senate, he'll earn a salary of $225,000 per year.